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“This is a sad day for all
of us,” said Superintendent Eva C. Joseph, Ed.D. “From the classroom to
the superintendent’s office, John Bach’s contributions to our district
speak for themselves – he was one of the most influential educational
leaders in our city’s history.
“He provided great vision,
guidance and compassion for our students, our schools and our entire
community during a distinguished tenure that saw significant changes in
public education and society as a whole. He will be deeply missed.”
After earning a B.S. in
Pre-Med at Siena College in 1952 and an M.S. in Education Administration
at Siena the following year, Mr. Bach began his work with Albany’s
public schools as a science and math teacher at William S. Hackett
Junior High School (now a middle school) in 1955. He transferred to
Albany High School the following year and taught Biology and Chemistry
through the 1961-62 school year while also teaching Algebra in adult
education classes at the former Albany Evening High School.
During this time he also
served as president of the Albany Public School Teachers’ Association
and negotiated the first non-contributory health insurance plan for
school district employees in New York state.
From 1962-66 he served as a
guidance counselor at Albany High. He became assistant principal in
1966, housemaster in 1967 and, in 1973, principal of the newly combined
comprehensive Albany High, which moved to the current location on
Washington Avenue in the middle of the 1973-74 school year.
Mr. Bach was instrumental in
the planning for the consolidation of the former Philip Schuyler and
Albany high schools, chairing the Steering Committee established to
develop strategies to facilitate the move.
Mr. Bach served as Albany
High’s principal until 1986, when he moved to central administration as
deputy superintendent, responsible for curriculum and instruction. In
this capacity, he worked with the State University of New York at Albany
to develop the first partnership programs with the school district, and
also was responsible for Albany High’s pioneering Chinese language
program, among numerous other achievements.
Mr. Bach is survived by his wife of 46 years, Patricia Mulderry, and
five children.
Calling hours are scheduled for 4-8 p.m. Sunday at the Daniel Keenan
Funeral Home, 490 Delaware Ave., Albany. Funeral services are scheduled
for 10 a.m. Monday at St. Catherine of Siena Church, 40 Hopewell St.,
Albany.
The City School District
of Albany serves almost 9,400 students in 19 elementary, middle and
high schools. The district includes several magnet schools and programs,
as well as other innovative academic opportunities for students in
addition to neighborhood schools. The district is more than halfway
through its comprehensive facilities project to newly build and/or
renovate nearly all of its elementary and middle schools. The ultimate
goal of the facilities project is to provide schools with the resources
necessary to help students succeed in the 21st century. |
